"It's shocking, crushing news," Petty's
friend and Traveling Wilburys bandmate Bob Dylan tells Rolling Stone in
a statement. "I thought the world of Tom. He was a great performer, full
of the light, a friend, and I'll never forget him."

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers recently completed a
summer tour last Monday with three nights at the Hollywood Bowl.

Despite his lifetime on rock's A-list, Petty didn't actually
notch his first No. 1 album until 2014's Hypnotic
Eye. Speaking to Billboard
around the time of that release, Petty
said, "The only good thing about getting older is you get smart enough to
avoid unnecessary problems. You know what's worth spending time on and what's
not. If I had known that at 20, life would have been so much easier, but you
have to experience all these things so you figure out how to find your way
through the woods."

Tom Petty, a songwriter who melded California rock with a
deep, stubborn Southern heritage, died on Monday after suffering cardiac
arrest.

Mr. Petty's songs were staples of FM rock radio through
decades, and with hits like "Refugee," "Don't Come
Around Here No More," "Free
Fallin'" and "Into the Great Wide Open," Mr. Petty sold millions of albums
and headlined arenas and festivals well into 2017. He played the Super Bowl
halftime show in 2008 and entered the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. But
his songs stayed down-to-earth, with sturdy guitar riffs carrying lyrics that
spoke for underdogs and ornery outcasts.

Petty was outspoken in his protection of the rights of
artists, taking issue with record companies on a number of occasions about what
he believed to be unjust practices. Earlier this year he was named MusiCares
person of the year for his "career-long interest in defending artists' rights"
as well as for his charitable work with homeless people in Los Angeles.